Why will the Texas House of Representatives impeach the attorney general?

After years of legal and ethical scandals surrounding Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a Republican, the state’s GOP-controlled House of Representatives voted Saturday to impeach him, prompting his suspension. immediate of charge.

The rarely used extraordinary move was carried out in the final days of the state legislative session, ushering in a fierce political fight pitting Paxton, who has aligned himself closely with former President Donald Trump and far-right conservatives. of the state, against House Republican leaders, who suddenly appear to have had enough of the allegations of wrongdoing that have long dogged Texas’ top attorney.

Paxton fought every step of the way, calling the process “corrupt” and calling on his supporters to rally for him at the state Capitol during the vote.

Here’s a look at how the impeachment process works in Texas, and how the 60-year-old Republican became the third official to face impeachment in the state’s nearly 200-year history:

The process

Under the Texas Constitution and law, the impeachment of a state official is similar to the process at the federal level: The action begins in the state House of Representatives.

In this case, the five-member House General Investigation Committee voted unanimously Thursday to send 20 charges of impeachment to the 149-member plenary session.

Paxton faced grim legislative math. Only a simple majority was needed to impeach him. That meant only a small fraction of the 85 Republican representatives needed to vote against him if all 64 Democratic representatives did. The final vote was 121 in favor and 23 against.

The House of Representatives can call witnesses to testify, but the investigative commission already did so before recommending impeachment. For several hours Wednesday, investigators gave an extraordinary public exposure of Paxton’s years of scandals and alleged wrongdoing.

The debate and vote on Saturday lasted about four hours.

Now that the House of Representatives has approved impeaching Paxton, a trial in the Senate will decide whether to permanently remove him or acquit him. Removal by the Senate requires a two-thirds majority.

a sudden threat

There’s a big difference between the Texas and federal systems: Impeachment means Paxton is immediately suspended from office pending the outcome of the Senate trial. The state’s governor, Republican Greg Abbott, would name an interim replacement.

The Texas Republican Party controls all branches of the state government. Until this week, lawmakers and Republican leaders had remained silent in the face of the countless examples of Paxton’s alleged misconduct and violations of the law that have surfaced in court dockets and news stories over the years.

In February, Paxton agreed to settle a corruption lawsuit brought by former employees. The $3.3 million payment must be approved by the House of Representatives, and its chairman, Republican Dade Phelan, has said he doesn’t believe taxpayers should cover the cost.

The House began investigating Paxton shortly after the deal was reached.

“Were it not for Paxton’s own request for a taxpayer-funded settlement of his wrongful conduct, Paxton would not be facing impeachment,” the commission of inquiry wrote in a memo Friday.

republican vs. republican

The five-member commission that crafted the Paxton investigation is led by his fellow Republicans, in contrast to more prominent recent examples of impeachment trials in the United States.

The federal impeachments that former President Trump faced in 2020 and 2021 were driven by the Democrats who held the majority in the House of Representatives. In both cases, the impeachment charges passed by the House of Representatives failed in the Senate, where Republicans had enough votes to block conviction.

In Texas, Republicans control both chambers by large majorities, and the state’s GOP leaders have all the tools with which they can exert influence. That didn’t stop Paxton from trying to mount a partisan defense.

When the House investigation was released Tuesday, Paxton hinted that it was a political attack by Phelan. He called for the resignation of the “liberal” spokesman and accused him of showing up drunk to a marathon session last Friday.

Phelan’s office denied the allegation, saying Paxton was trying to “save his reputation.”

Moments after the vote, Paxton’s office said the impeachment was “based on totally false claims” and cited internal reports that found no wrongdoing. House investigators said the attorney general’s investigation into his actions includes false and disproved claims.

While top Republican officials had been largely silent in the run-up to the vote, Trump and US Sen. Ted Cruz came to their defense on Saturday. The senator asserted that the impeachment process was a “sham,” while the former president warned on his Truth Social social network that he would “fight” against the Republicans in the House of Representatives who went ahead with the process.

Abbott, who praised Paxton as he was sworn in for a third term last January, has not commented on the impeachment process.

Marriage

Paxton, who served five terms as a representative and one more as a senator before becoming state attorney general, still has allies in Austin.

One of them is his wife, Angela, a senator who has been in office for two terms and who could find herself in an uncomfortable position to vote on her husband’s political future. It’s unclear if she would or should participate in the Senate trial, where all 31 members make for narrow margins.

In an unexpected twist, Paxton’s impeachment involves an extramarital affair that he acknowledged to members of his staff years before. The impeachment charges include bribing one of Paxton’s donors, Austin real estate developer Nate Paul, who allegedly hired the woman he had an affair with in exchange for legal help.

a process of years

The impeachment process dates back to 2015, when Paxton was indicted on securities fraud charges for which he has yet to go to trial. Lawmakers accused Paxton of making false statements to state securities regulators.

But most of the charges stem from Paxton’s relationships with Paul and a notable revolt by the attorney general’s top agents in 2020.

That fall, eight of Paxton’s top aides reported their boss to the FBI, accusing him of bribery and abuse of authority to help Paul. Subsequently, four of them filed a whistleblower lawsuit. The report prompted the launch of a federal criminal investigation, which was taken up by the US Justice Department’s Public Integrity Section in February.

The impeachment charges encompassed a wide variety of allegations related to Paxton’s dealings with Paul. The allegations include attempts to interfere in foreclosure lawsuits and misuse of legal opinions to benefit Paul, as well as firing, harassment and interference with staff who reported what was happening. The bribery charges stem from that relationship, as well as Paul allegedly covering for costly renovations at Paxton’s Austin residence.

The altercation left a mark on the state’s attorney’s office, which has long been a leading legal opponent of Democratic rule in the White House.

Since Paxton’s staff turned to the FBI, his agency has been left behind-the-scenes in chaos, with seasoned lawyers resigning over practices they say are aimed at skewing their legal work, rewarding allies and banishing the FBI. dissent.

Texas Stories

Paxton already seemed to be heading for the history books with his unprecedented request that the Federal Court reverse Biden’s victory over Trump in the 2020 presidential election. Now he is writing a completely different story.

The Texas House had only impeached two officials in its history.

Governor James “Pa” Ferguson was removed from office in 1917 for misapplication of public funds, embezzlement, and misappropriation of a special fund. State Judge OP Carrillo was forced from office in 1975 for using public money and funds for personal use and for making false financial statements.

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